Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation
Memorandum Order No. 16, issued on November 21, 2017, directs the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board and its member agencies to actively work towards lifting or easing restrictions on foreign participation in various investment sectors. These sectors include private recruitment, professional practices beneficial to the public, local public works contracts, public services (excluding certain public utilities), agricultural trading (excluding retail), higher education teaching, retail trade, and domestic market enterprises. The order emphasizes the need for coordinated legislative efforts to relax these restrictions and to inform the President about any restrictions that can be amended without legislative action. This initiative aims to enhance the Philippines' competitiveness and stimulate economic growth in the ASEAN region.
Quick Answers
- What is Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation about?
- Memorandum Order No. 16, issued on November 21, 2017, directs the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board and its member agencies to actively work towards lifting or easing restrictions on foreign participation in various investment sectors. These sectors include private recruitment, professional practices beneficial to the public, local public works contracts, public services (excluding certain public utilities), agricultural trading (excluding retail), higher education teaching, retail trade, and domestic market enterprises. The order emphasizes the need for coordinated legislative efforts to relax these restrictions and to inform the President about any restrictions that can be amended without legislative action. This initiative aims to enhance the Philippines' competitiveness and stimulate economic growth in the ASEAN region.
- What type of law is Memorandum Order No. 16?
- Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation (Memorandum Order No. 16) is a Philippine Presidential Issuances enacted by the Congress of the Philippines.
- When was Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation enacted?
- Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation (Memorandum Order No. 16) was enacted on Nov 21, 2017.
- What is the citation for Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation?
- Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation, Memorandum Order No. 16, Nov 21, 2017 (Philippines)
Law Information
- Reference Number
- Memorandum Order No. 16
- Date Enacted
- Category
- Presidential Issuances
- Subcategory
- Memorandum Orders
- Jurisdiction
- Philippines
- Enacting Body
- Congress of the Philippines
Full Law Text
November 21, 2017
MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. 16
DIRECTING THE NATIONAL ECONOMIC AND DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (NEDA) BOARD AND ITS MEMBER AGENCIES TO EXERT UTMOST EFFORTS TO LIFT OR EASE RESTRICTIONS ON CERTAIN INVESTMENT AREAS OR ACTIVITIES WITH LIMITED FOREIGN PARTICIPATION
To raise the Philippines' level of competitiveness, and to foster higher economic growth in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) region and beyond through joint endeavors in the spirit of equality and partnership, the NEDA Board and its member agencies are hereby directed to take immediate steps to lift or ease existing restrictions on foreign participation in the following investment areas or activities:
1. Private recruitment, whether for local or overseas employment;
2. Practice of particular professions, where allowing foreign participation will redound to the public benefit;
3. Contracts for the construction and repair of locally-funded public works;
4. Public services, except activities and systems that are recognized as public utilities such as transmission and distribution of electricity, water pipeline distribution system, and sewerage pipeline system;
5. Culture, production, milling, processing, and trading except retailing, of rice and corn and acquiring by barter, purchase or otherwise, rice and corn and the by-products thereof;
6. Teaching at higher education levels;
7. Retail trade enterprises; and
8. Domestic market enterprises.
The members of the NEDA Board are hereby directed to earnestly support, in a coordinated manner, such legislative efforts as may be necessary to eliminate or relax the aforesaid restrictions, including pending legislation seeking to clarify the definition of public utilities.
The NEDA Board is likewise directed to immediately advise the President regarding those restrictions on foreign participation which may already be lifted or eased without need of legislation, with the aim of amending the Tenth Regular Foreign Investment Negative List under Executive Order (EO) No. 184 (s. 2015), in accordance with the objectives of this Order.
For compliance. aDSIHc
Manila, November 21, 2017.
Cite This Law
Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation, Memorandum Order No. 16, Nov 21, 2017 (Philippines)
Directing the NEDA Board and Its Member Agencies to Exert Utmost Efforts to Lift or Ease Restrictions on Certain Investment Areas or Activities with Limited Foreign Participation, Memorandum Order No. 16 (Phil. 2017)
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